Freedom of speech? Try it at a Bush rally!
As anyone who has seen him try to answer questions in a lucid, intelligent fashion knows, our president has limited knowledge of the issues that our country is facing – many of them created by his mismanagement of domestic and foreign policy. In an effort to keep him comfortable and make sure that no one asks an unexpected question, protestors are caged in “free speech zones” usually several blocks from Bush’s appearances, audiences are pre-selected and questions are scripted so that our president appears to be on top of things. Even a “pre-selected” attendee found wearing a T-shirt which questions Bush’s policies will be escorted away from a rally. However, Bush’s inability to speak off-the-cuff isn’t really the purpose of this letter.
There is an enlightening article on “free speech zones” on the Web site for The American Conservative (the Dec. 15, 2003 issue) which addresses the lengths to which the Bush administration is willing to go in order to quell dissent and prevent Americans from exercising their rights. My concern is that the Bush administration forces protestors into these “free speech zones” and if the protestors don’t comply, they are arrested for disorderly conduct or trespassing. The point is, isn’t America a “free speech zone”? Since when has free speech needed to be caged? This is a clear violation of freedom of speech and I am shocked that the media, which operates by virtue of the First Amendment, is not outraged by the suppression of dissent. Why aren’t Americans outraged? While the Republican Party will defend to the death your right to bear arms, it seems to be conspicuously and suspiciously complicit with the violation of your right to free speech. When dissent and protest must be caged behind chain link and razor wire, is it time to consider that we may be approaching a police state?
Phyllis Minchew
Everett
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
